It is known that the fuel cell has to be fed with hydrogen and air or pure oxygen. Generally, it must be cooled given the power densities sought; to this end, preferably, the cell is passed through by a coolant such as water. Furthermore, certain important gas management parameters must be controlled, such as gas pressure, gas temperature, gas humidity, gas recirculation rate. This requires a fairly complex and bulky gas management system, generally as bulky as the cell itself.
A fuel cell comprises a stack of bipolar plates and ion exchange membranes arranged alternately. The stack is clamped between two endplates. The fluid feed and return ducts are generally arranged parallel to the stacking direction and terminate at the endplates or at one of them, where they join ducts connecting the stack to said gas management system.
Integrating in one of the so-called endplates elements of the system for managing the fluids used by the cell is also known from US patent application 2004/0247984. However, according to the technology described, the elements for managing the fluids used by the cell are divided between a number of plates which are arranged in the direction of stacking, which leads to a substantial increase in the bulk of the cell in the stacking direction.